City of Hidden Monsters
by jessica.w.campbell
Summary: (I'm not that good at summaries)Everyone has been trying to get back to their normal Shadowhunter lives but once they discover a strange Shadowhunter called Seraphina the chaos begins again. Magnus tries to contain his feelings for Alec, while Jace and Clary are fine until a secret reaches breaking point. Despite everything they all must fight together to protect the ones they love
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1- Seraphina**

"Jace, Clary, Alec get your stuff, there has been a demon attack!" Isabelle shouted as she ran to the weapons room.

After last year, they had all been getting on with their lives as Shadowhunters and doing what they did best. There had been regular attacks in the city from demons that they had to tend to, but nothing as serious as this.

"There are around a dozen in an alley, Simon said he'd pick us up and take us there so you better hurry up!" Isabelle was all suited up and was waiting by the lift.

Alec was the first to meet her outside the lift with his bow and arrow and his hair wet and stringy as if he had just come out of the shower. He wore the usual black top with black jeans and a leather jacket and he was just finishing a strength rune on his forearm. A few seconds later, he was followed by Jace and Clary who were arguing with each other. They had been arguing a lot lately and it was usually about little things, like who should have the seraph blade and who should just carry a normal sword. Alec and Isabelle both shook their heads as they got in the lift and made their way to the gate outside the institute where Simon was waiting for them. He turned and smiled once he saw Isabelle. She noticed that he had cut his hair so that the curls were closer to his head and the white shirt he wore was stained with dirt. They had decided that they would take their relationship slow, but she didn't know whether to hug him or not. She ended up just smiling at him and saying hello as they all got into the white van and made their way to the location of the attack.

The van stopped outside an alley that was lined with closed down buildings and filled with thick smoke with the familiar smell of demons. As they got out of the van, Jace took out his seraph blade, Clary drew a sword out of its sheath, Alec got his bow and arrow ready and Isabelle allowed her whip to uncoil from around her wrist and fall into her hand. The van drove off while they walked in a line, Isabelle's heals were the only noise heard until they got deeper into the smoke, where they heard the wines and growls of many demons and the slashing of a blade against skin. Isabelle had to squint to see a figure dressed in a black dress with purple converses and tanned skin dispatching the demons one by one. Isabelle looked at the others to see that they were all making the exact same face as her- the face of bewilderment. Apart from Jace, she had never seen someone singlehandedly take on some of the biggest demons. The girl was fighting Arachne Demons with eight limbs and poison dripping off their sharp fangs, Acanthus Demons that had the thinnest but deadliest spikes all over their bodies and Renu Demons that turned into dust to move with the speed of light then become tall black monsters with mouths on their hands. The only weapons the girl was armed with was a double sided sword with blades that were made of aquamarine glass and what looked like a blade that was curved to have the shape of a boomerang. As Isabelle took a step forward, the girl threw her boomerang blade so that it span in a circle, narrowly missing Isabelle. The boomerang took most of the demons heads clean off, leaving only two for the girl to make quick work of, which only took a few swipes of her sword. Every demon has been killed and there was a silence as the girl lowered her sword, caught her boomerang and breathed heavily, allowing her chocolate brown curly hair to dance with the wind across her face.

"Sorry, I beat you to it," she laughed as she caught her breath.

Isabelle analysed her as if she were a painting in the institute. She was tall like her but not as slim- she was curvier, _she's probably a size 8 or 10_ she thought. She wore black leather gloves and bracelets and wrist bands decorated her arms like baubles on a Christmas tree. Her lips were rouged and she had green eyes and cheeks that were rounded. The girl had an English accent like Jace's, her voice even carried a hint of cockiness like him as well.

"Who are you?" Clary asked,

"Someone you wish you knew," the girl smiled as she walked towards the buildings to the left.

She took out a black crystal steele with roses snaked around it from a pocket in her dress and began to draw a rune onto the wall. A portal appeared and before they could say anything, the girl jumped into it leaving them in the alley contemplating what had just happened.

Alec didn't understand what had just happened. Usually there's a girl half dead begging for their help and they save her by killing the demons together, not a girl who effortlessly dispatches them. He looked at Jace who was standing to his left, not even he had words to say and he can usually say something about everything. Clary was the first to make a move and walk up to the portal that was still swirling. The wind from the portal blew her red hair back and made her black leather jacket look like wings.

"Are we gonna just stand here or follow her?" Clary asked looking at them.

Alec usually disagreed with all her ideas, but he wanted to know where the girl had come from. He had only ever seen Clary create a portal, so how could she? A nod from him was the signal for Clary to jump into the portal and for the rest to follow with Alec behind them.

When Alec stepped out of the portal next to Jace, the girl stood in front of them and watched the portal close.

"You didn't have to follow me," she sighed as she threw her weapons onto an elaborately designed red couch.

The whole room seemed familiar to Alec, the emptiness, the bar at the back of the room. It all slotted into place when a tall figure entered the dark room to stand next to the girl. Of course, of all places to be lead to, it was to Magnus Bane's apartment.

"What are you doing here? Magnus questioned,

"They followed me," the girl said innocently.

Magnus didn't even lay an eye on Alec, it was as if he was a ghost. He was wearing a black dressing gown and his hair was in its 'just woken up' hairstyle, Alec used to love putting his hands through his hair in the mornings. He had been yearning for Magnus ever since they broke up, spending time around Clary and Jace didn't help him try to move on.

"Seraphina, go to my room and stay there," Magnus demanded.

Seraphina nodded, crossed her arms and walked into Magnus's room.

"Who is she, Magnus?" Jace walked around the room,

"Why does it matter to you?"

"I don't know if you noticed, but _if_ she is a Shadowhunter, she's a strange one," Jace picked up the boomerang blade and ran his finger over it,

"She's obviously a Shadowhunter," Clary pointed out,

"A Shadowhunter with no runes," Isabelle looked at Magnus.

Magnus shrugged and made his clueless face that Alec could always see right through.

"How could she create a portal when the only person to know of that rune is Clary?" Alec asked, partly hoping for Magnus to look at him.

Unfortunately, Magnus didn't look at him when he replied, "She's a smart girl. I'm surprised by the fact that she got there before you."

Alec fiddled with his arrow as he watched Jace walk around Magnus then back next to him. There was a moment when Alec wanted to tell Magnus how much he missed him and loved him, but then he realized how stupid he'd look and, with the way that Magnus was ignoring him, he'd get shot down like a deer.

"The Clave don't know of the rune that opens portals," Clary said,

"And it's obvious you're keeping some vital information from us," Jace tilted his head,

"There is nothing that you need to know. Now if you don't mind I have sleep to catch up on and there is a door that you should be leaving by over there," Magnus pointed to the door and it opened furiously.

Jace grinned as he walked past him and lead the way to the door. Clary and Isabelle followed him, but Alec stood facing Magnus. There was something about Magnus that seemed very guarded, as if he was protecting himself from an attack. He didn't look at Alec, instead he was looking in the distance and when Alec finally moved towards the door, his head moved to look at the floor. Before leaving, Alec turned around to look at Magnus. _Nothing could hurt more than this moment_ Alec said to himself and he breathed in heavily.

"I miss you," he said almost like a whimper.

Magnus lifted his head up as if to beg for strength from any God that was above. He shook his head and gulped.

"Just go Alexander," he emotionlessly said as he turned away and sunk down into the couch as Alec left and closed the door.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2- Lonely Hearts Club**

Tears used to be strangers to Magnus, but they became good friends when he broke up with Alec and they started running down his cheek once Alec had closed the door. There was a reason why he didn't want to see Alec again; he hated being reminded of the things he couldn't hold onto. Seraphina opened the bedroom door which was the cue for him to wipe his eyes and cheeks and get off the couch.

"I'm sorry Magnus," Seraphina said with a soothing voice as she walked up to him,

"Don't be, I'm fine," Magnus forced a smile,

"Your definition of fine right now is that you're dying slowly but trying to hide it," Seraphina stated as she sat on the couch and looked up at him.

Magnus didn't want to think about Alec right now, he wanted to move on; to forget the amazing dream he had and get back to the dull reality.

"What are you planning on doing tonight?" he asked as he sat next to her,

"Singing with a band at the café down the road,"

"Okay, well I'll be bringing someone with me to watch you."

Magnus got up and walked towards his bedroom door. When he looked back at Seraphina, she was standing up and was making a face that showed concern, but also that she knew he was hiding his true feelings. He had taken her in from a young age and until he found Alec, she was the only person he'd tell everything to, but why didn't he want to tell her how he was feeling now? Why couldn't he just tell her that he doesn't know how to cope without holding Alec in his arms or kissing his lips? Instead he smiled, blinked so that his cat eyes showed and then went into his room to change.

"Happy birthday Clary," Isabelle smiled as she gave Clary a small white box.

They were sitting in a small café in front of a stage that had two microphone stands, two amps and a drum kit. Isabelle sat on a hunter green velvet arm chair opposite Alec and Clary and Jace were sitting on a black velvet couch. There was a long coffee table in the middle with two mugs of coffee, one cup of tea and a glass of lemonade. She smiled as she watched Clary open the white box to see a pair of diamond earrings.

"Thank you so much," Clary hugged Izzy and put the box on the coffee table before sinking into Jace's chest.

After the events earlier today, Izzy wanted to make sure that Alec had his mind on something else and that Clary had the birthday every girl should have. She had planned with Simon, to bring Clary to the café where he was performing with his band to surprise her and the show was about to begin.

Two guitarists came on, followed by a drummer, a girl with a semi-acoustic guitar and Simon. He stood behind one of the microphones and smiled at Isabelle and Clary. He wore the white t-shirt from before, but it was clean this time, and black jeans with a black studded belt. Once the song started, people started clapping and Isabelle's eyes became fixated on Simon. His singing voice had a bit of an edge to it and the way he moved to the music was hypnotising. It wasn't just him singing, the girl with the semi-acoustic guitar sang the harmonies which made the song even more beautiful. She wore a purple and white checker shirt with a black waistcoat, black jeans and purple converses that had black smudges on. Her hair was tied up and put to one side, revealing a face that Isabelle had seen before.

"Is that who I think it is?" Clary asked looking at Jace then Isabelle,

"Yep, that's Seraphina," Isabelle sighed.

When the band had finished, they walked off the stage and went to the back where the counter was. Isabelle, Clary, Alec and Jace looked back simultaneously to watch Seraphina hug Simon and laugh with him. Isabelle felt a bit of jealousy, but so would any girl who saw their boyfriend with a strange girl. She didn't have time to worry about that; when she scanned everyone sitting at the counter, she saw Magnus, but he wasn't alone. He was talking to a man who had brown hair, blue eyes and who was just as tall as Magnus. Isabelle looked at Alec to see him grab his coffee and sink into the armchair as he drank it. It was as if Magnus had done this to prove a point to Alec, which Isabelle thought was damn right bitchy and cold hearted. She got up and walked over to the counter. She wore a black skirt that was short at the front and longer at the back, along with a black tank top, a thick red belt and red high heels. All this attracted a lot of boys and whistles which she couldn't help but make a sneaky smile at.

"Well hello Magnus," she smiled as she slotted herself in between him and the other man, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything,"

"Actually you are," Magnus snapped.

Isabelle looked at him up and down with a face of disgust, even though he looked pretty good. He wore a black blazer over a white shirt with black skinny jeans and a golden chain with a ring on dangled over his chest.

"We need to talk _now_," she insisted.

Magnus gave a nod to the man standing behind her, who then walked past her, whispered something in Magnus's ear and left the café.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she had to stop herself from shouting at him,

"I was meeting with a dear old friend and listening to another friend sing," he replied,

"You know Alec is right there trying not to cry," she pointed at Alec and looked at him along with Magnus.

Alec was watching them but then turned his head away once they turned to look at him. It was obvious this was all getting to him; he was pale and instead of looking like the strong and sturdy big brother that he was, he looked like a vulnerable little puppy. She had tried to act like nothing affected her throughout the years, but this hurt her deeply- it was as if someone had stabbed her straight through the heart, but kept her alive to feel the pain.

"I didn't know he'd be here, okay," Magnus drank some water,

"Do you not care about him at all? You're hurting him every day you ignore him, every day you walk past without even looking at him, every…"

"Trust me, I care. I spend my time thinking about him, wondering what he's doing, preparing myself for if he ever gets into trouble. But what he did broke my trust in him and what is the point of a relationship without trust? I have never purposely wanted to hurt him, he means everything to me, and I would die for him. If you hadn't noticed Lightwood, warlocks have hearts too and mine is completely broken," he got up, walked over to the door and before leaving, he looked back at Alec and exhaled heavily.

Isabelle felt bad, she didn't know that Magnus could be like that, but at least she knew that he did and still does care for Alec. She turned around and looked at Simon. He was talking with his band mates and Seraphina while drinking coke through a straw. He looked at her and smiled as he put another straw in his coke and pushed it towards her. Cute little things like that wasn't really her thing, but when it was Simon, she couldn't care less. She sat next to him and drank through the extra straw while he pushed her straightened hair back and kissed her cheek.

"How do you know Seraphina?" she asked,

"We were looking for a female singer and she had sung here before so we asked her to join our band," Simon shrugged before he took another sip of coke.

Isabelle nodded, drank some coke and then got up to walk over to Seraphina. At this point Jace was standing next to her with Alec and Clary was talking to Simon. Seraphina turned around and smiled once she saw the three of them looking at her.

"Fancy seeing you guys again," she smiled as she drank from a mug,

"How do you know Magnus?" Alec quickly asked,

"He's been looking after me since I was around seven. Don't worry, nothing will ever happen between Magnus and I, I'm too sassy for him,"

"How do you know Clary's runes?" Jace interrupted,

"I just do. Every week I draw runes into my note book and one day I just happened to draw that runes that weren't even known by my father."

Something seemed odd about her and Isabelle wanted to know more. But before she could say anything, her necklace started pulsing violently and Seraphina had changed her posture from relaxed to straight up and alert. Isabelle clicked for Clary's attention and they ended up all leaving the café with Seraphina.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3- The Gothel Demon **

Clary found herself running behind everyone, which wasn't surprising; Jace, Isabelle, Alec and Seraphina were trained Shadowhunters from birth and she was wearing her new jeans that were surprisingly tight. They ran to the institute and into the weapons room.

"We don't need your help," Jace said as he got two seraph blades out,

"I couldn't care less if you did or didn't, but I'm going to help you so get over it," Seraphina protested as she watched everyone get a weapon.

Clary found it amusing watching someone go against Jace, especially a stranger like Seraphina. As she picked up a sword, she saw Seraphina take off a gold necklace with an aquamarine stone on the end. She threw it into the air and it shone, like witch light, as it flew through the air.

"If you wanna know exactly where the demons are, this will show you the way," she boasted as she crossed her arms.

Her point was proven and Jace gave her a seraph blade.

"_Castiel_," the seraph blade shone in Seraphina's hand, creating more light in the room, "sorry about all the light,"

"_Ezekiel_," Jace smiled as he swirled the seraph blade,

"Don't you need runes?" Alec asked as he found a dagger and stuffed it in his pocket,

"Nopes, I've been fine without them all my life," she smiled.

Isabelle's necklace started pulsing even more and the aquamarine stone started shaking violently.

"What does it mean when that happens?" Clary asked as Alec drew a balance rune on her shoulder,

"It means that they're on the move."

The stone moved faster than Clary could run and it led them to a patch with dead grass by the Hudson River, where there was nothing but silence and some trees surrounding the area, making it partly enclosed. The stone flew in front of Seraphina's face and turned black.

"That doesn't look like a good sign," Clary sighed as she readied herself,

"It means there is a greater demon here," she whispering and she put the necklace back around her neck.

A man walked towards them. He wore a long leather jacket, black boots, a white shirt that was stained with blood and black jeans. Clary walked towards him with Isabelle behind her, the blood on his shirt looked fresh and his pale face look traumatized.

"Are you okay?" Clary asked.

The man looked down so that they could only his black hair. Suddenly he hit Clary and Isabelle in the direction of the trees, they both hit their heads on them and landed on the ground with a thud. Clary's back became almost numb from the pain that surged all the way through her body and her head started throbbing. She tried to get up but her body was protesting against it and she ended up collapsing to the floor when she tried.

"It's nice to finally meet you Seraphina," the man said with a dark deep voice,

"Who are you and how do you know my name?" Seraphina asked staying in the exact same place,

"You are something that shouldn't be but has become, many people know of you and like me, want you dead."

Clary saw a twisted smile on the man's face before he vanished. Taking his place was a big dark monster that looked like it was made of melted tar. It was over eight feet with arms and legs but its body was covered in black liquid that coated it from head to toe and dripped onto the ground. Clary had given up on getting to her feet and shuffled over to Isabelle who was coughing and taking in as much air as possible. Her head was bleeding a little and they both had splinters in their arms. The only thing Clary could do to help was get a tissue from her pocket and place it on Izzy's head and whisper, "Everything's going to be fine."

They both turned to see Alec draw back his bow and fire an arrow straight at the greater demon, but it moved suddenly behind Alec, completely missing the arrow, and put one of his viscous black arms around his neck, chocking him till his lips almost went purple. Jace ran behind the demon and slashed its back with his seraph blade multiple times until it let go of Alec and turned its attention to Jace. Watching Jace made Clary think of all the times she had been saved by him in some way and how he was an extraordinary Shadowhunter- compared to him, she was a beginner and he was a black belt professional. She stumbled on to her feet and ran through the pain to Alec who was still gasping for air. There was a black cut across his neck that was bleeding slowly, but enough to kill him slowly. She grabbed her stele out of her pocket, drew an _iratze_ on his neck, even though her hands were shaking and sat him up against a tree. They both watched as Jace fought the demon with Seraphina just standing there behind him.

"By the way, you just standing there is really helping," he joked.

Clary laughed a bit, it was amazing how he could still make jokes even if he was out of breath fighting an almost indestructible demon.

"This is a Gothel demon, I remember reading about it. Eventually it…"

Seraphina stopped as the Gothel demon staggered back from Jace, lifted its arms and then separated into two identical demons.

"…It does that," Seraphina stood next to Jace with her seraph blade up and ready,

"If you know so much, how do you kill it?" Jace asked as one of the demons attacked him.

The other went behind him to attack, but Seraphina moved so fast that Clary didn't notice that she had moved to have her back against Jace's and slashed the demon. They both ended up fighting back to back which was a sight to watch. They both moved as if they were dancing together, they were graceful but full of strength and it was almost as if they were the same person. Jace bent over to catch his breath, as he did Seraphina rested her back on his and threw a dagger from her pocket at the demon in front of Jace while piercing the other demon's arm. When she jumped back off and landed in a crouched position, Jace span round so that his blade slit both the demons. The Gothel demon then put itself back together to become one and grabbed Seraphina by the neck. Her feet were still on the ground and she took advantage by jumping so her shoulders slipped through the demons gooey arms and flipped forward to land with ease on the ground in front of it.

"There's a red centre in its chest. We need to expose it, but once we do, we'll only have one shot," she explained as she caught her breath,

"Alec, do you have enough strength for one shot?" Jace asked as he went round the back of the demon and started attacking it.

Alec tried to lift his bow, but his arm flopped and a shake of his head showed that he was defeated. The demon turned to face Jace and as he fought it, Seraphina ran over to Alec and took his bow and arrow.

"Jace, make it face this way!" she shouted as she readied the bow and arrow,

"Since when were you the boss?" he shouted back as he cut off one of the demons arms.

It howled in pain as its arm turned to ash on the ground.

"Since we got here and since I knew more about demons than you, now just do as I say!" she boomed.

Jace rolled so he was behind the demon, which then turned quickly making some of the sticky black stuff that covered it fly onto the ground and in front of where Clary and Alec sat. Clary saw a pulsing scarlet red light in the Gothel demons chest, but it was moving too fast. How anyone could shoot an arrow straight at it seemed impossible, including the fact that it seemed so small from where Clary was sitting. Seraphina took a deep breath and drew back the arrow. Everything seemed to slow down in Clary's eyes, she saw Jace who was fighting the demon from the ground, Isabelle who was watching with a face of terror and Seraphina who was as solid as a rock. The demon raised his remaining arm to attack Jace with force, but before he could even move it, Seraphina had released the arrow which glided through the air with speed and hit the red ball of light in the demons chest. It staggered back while looking at the arrow and fell to the floor. Jace stood up as he watched dark blue liquid ooze out of it and onto the ground. It made one last howl before turning into dust.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4- A Heart Breaking Saviour **

Alec screamed in pain as Jace lay him down on his bed. The skin around the gash on his neck had become black and it was spreading. Watching him made Clary think of when Alec almost died because of another greater demon, it reminded her how even the bravest of Shadowhunters feel the most pain in the end. Isabelle was trying to put on a brave face as she got the medical kit, but Clary knew she wanted to burst into tears, even she felt a tear slowly fall down her cheek.

"Clary don't just stand there, take off his top while we get out everything," Jace demanded.

She nodded and took off Alec's black t-shirt slowly, being careful of his cut. Hearing him scream and watching the agony surge through his face was heart breaking for Clary, how Jace and Isabelle could force themselves to stay calm was beyond her.

"Your medical kit won't do anything to save him," Seraphina sighed as she took out her phone from her pocket,

"Well if you have a better way, please share!" roared Jace.

It made Clary and Isabelle jump, but Seraphina looked at him with a hard expression showing that, of course, she had a better way.

"You must know, that the only way to cure a greater demon wound is by getting…" Seraphina was interrupted by the opening of the door.

"A warlock," Magnus continued for her.

He was wearing a black cloak with its hood up, it was buttoned at the top and blew back as he walked over to Alec's bedside and pushed Clary out of the way.

"You took his top off without me? How very rude," he joked as he pulled down his hood,

"What are you doing here?" Jace complained,

"Saving Alec, now if you could all leaving that would be great."

Magnus put his hand over Alec's chest and after leaving it there for a while, he clenched his fist and closed his eyes. Clary could see that this was hurting Magnus even more than Izzy and Jace put together, if she had ever doubted Magnus's love for Alec, she had been proven wrong. She nodded, grabbed Jace's hand and led everyone out of the room, leaving Magnus to heal Alec.

For Jace, hearing the screaming from outside Alec's room was harder than when being there with him- knowing he couldn't be there to hold his hand and tell him everything will be okay was like torture. He sat on the floor opposite the door with Clary's arms around him, rubbing his arm and telling him that Alec would be okay, but Jace had been through this before and didn't need the comforting. Of course Alec would be okay, Magnus had saved him many times and Jace couldn't lose him, he was more than a best friend, he was his brother, his protection. Magnus opened the door so that Jace could see Alec sitting up in his bed, his face was pale, sweaty and full of pain. Alec was squinting but once he opened his eyes, he could see that they were black instead of the deep blue they usually were. This made Jace jump to his feet and shout,

"You're not doing enough to save him!"

Magnus looked at him with a frustrated look, "Trust me, I am doing everything I can to save him- I have used almost all my strength. Seraphina, I need you right now."

Seraphina nodded and went into the room.

"If he dies I swear…" Jace started,

"I promise, I will _not_ let him die," Magnus said as he closed the door and the screaming started again.

Jace could do nothing but kick the door before sitting back down opposite it. After a couple of seconds, a bright green light leaked through the sides and the bottom of the door and the door began to shake. The light was almost blinding, and as it crept out further into the corridor, green and black sparks burst out of the door. This lasted for less than fifteen seconds until the light receded, the sparks stopped flying out and the door stopped shaking. The screaming stopped. The door then opened to reveal Seraphina, who looked as exhausted as Magnus. She moved her head in the gesture to say that they could come in and once they all were in his room, there was a feeling of calm. Alec was sweaty and pale like before but the cut on his neck was gone and Magnus was standing in the corner of the room, inhaling and exhaling deeply. Alec and Magnus looked at each other and Jace could see that they both wanted each other, but Magnus shook his head causing Alec to turn away and distract himself with talking to Clary and Izzy. _You saved him but you're breaking his heart,_ Jace thought as he shook his head at Magnus who then started talking to Seraphina. Jace put his hands through Alec's hair and they smiled at each other. His eyes were no longer black and had returned to their blue state. Magnus had kept his promise.

After spending time with Alec, Jace offered to walk Seraphina to the door. Magnus had already left after saying goodbye to all of them, apart from Alec.

"Thank you for helping fight the demon and for helping save Alec," Jace smiled as they walked down the corridor,

"No problem and if there was ever any tension between us, could it just be erased?"

They were in the elevator when Jace realized how beautiful Seraphina was. When she smiled, her eyes seemed to glow like a seraph blade and every detail in her face was highlighted just by that one smile. Her skin was golden and the moonlight that came in through the elevator created a halo of light around her.

"Of course, despite your cockiness, you seem like someone I could be friends with," Jace laughed,

"Me? Cocky? You must be mad. Anyway, aren't you the king of cockiness," she joked,

"I haven't got my crown yet, so I guess it's still to be decided."

They laughed and joked together while walking to the gate where Magnus stood waiting. The sky was clear so the moon could be fully seen and the stars glittered like Seraphina's eyes. The wind blew the curls of her hair over her face, so Jace pushed her hair behind her ears and smiled. Her skin was velvety and after pushing her hair out of her face, he saw her lips looked just as soft and she was biting the bottom one.

"Thanks, curse of having magnificent hair," she giggled as he pulled his hand away,

"I should know, have you seen these beautiful golden curls," he laughed,

"Alec, should be on his feet in two days, if you need anything, you know where I am," she opened the gate making Magnus begin to walk,

"Why would I need you?" Jace challenged.

Seraphina turned around as she got half way through the gate, "You never know when you'll need saving again."

She winked before closing the gate and running after Magnus who was out of sight.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5- A Magical Night**

It had been a couple of days since Alec was injured and Jace had took it upon himself to make sure he recovered, but that meant listening to him go on and on about how he wanted Magnus. He felt bad that Clary's birthday was spent fighting the Gothel demon and watching Alec almost die, so he had asked Jocelyn if he could take Clary out for the evening and then walk her back home. Jocelyn agreed and also offered to pay as a birthday present, this proved to Jace that she had gotten to grips with him being with Clary. He took this opportunity to go all out by booking a reservation at a new restaurant in town and he wore one of the smartest outfits he had; a black blazer over a white shirt with black trousers and leather formal shoes. He couldn't be bothered to sort out his hair, so he just gave it a brush making his hair flow behind his ears as well as slightly in front of her face.

He waited outside her apartment for a while, making sure that the taxi he came in was still waiting behind him. He smiled as he watched her come out the door wearing a mauve dress that ended just above her knees and was lined with white lace. The straps were thick and around her waist was a thick white ribbon that was tied up into a bow at the back. Her hair was tied to the side and reflected the sun even though it was setting.

"You're staring again," she blushed,

"It's because you look beautiful," he smiled as he pulled her into him gently and kissed her slowly.

She stroked his cheek and smiled while they looked into each other's eyes,

"So, where are we going?" she asked as he opened the door to the taxi,

"It's a surprise," he replied as he got into the taxi next to her.

Clary was surprised when the taxi pulled up in front of the restaurant. The outside was black with the name of the restaurant _Paradiso Attende_ in red, there were round tables with rosewood table cloths and either black or white napkins with flowers in the middle. The outside of the building had big windows so that Clary could see the same tables inside a room with marble flooring, amber walls and chandeliers hanging down. It was all very beautiful, she couldn't believe that Jace would ever think of taking her there. They walked in to be greeted by a man in a sharp black suit.

"I have a reservation under Jace…"

"Right this way," the man smiled as he showed them to their table.

It was inside and next to the window so they could see the changing colour of the sky, which Clary loved to see. Once they sat down, they both opened their menus and Clary took the opportunity to thank Jace.

"This place is so posh, how are you going to pay for this?" Clary said as she lowered her menu,

"Don't worry, this is your birthday present," Jace smiled over his menu.

Everything looked so lovely, Clary wasn't sure whether to take advantage and order the most expensive things or to go for something she had tried many times before.

"Oh well hello," chuckled a familiar voice.

Clary looked up to see Seraphina wearing a black 50's style dress that had a pencil skirt and a white apron over it. There was a black choker with a red flower around her neck and her hair was let free so it curled down to her waist. She wore red lipstick and her eyeliner was thick and swirled at the ends.

"Are you ready to order drinks?" she got out a pad and pen from her apron and smiled,

"I didn't know that you worked here- should've chosen somewhere else," joked Jace as he leaned back in his seat,

"A girl needs to earn money somehow," she laughed,

"I'll have a coke," smiled Clary.

She wasn't sure about Seraphina, yes she may have killed the greater demon and helped save Alec, but there was something about her that was threatening; Clary wasn't sure if it was her confidents or the fact that she kept popping up everywhere.

"Good choice, and for the gentleman," Seraphina turned to face Jace,

"You sound really posh when you say that," Jace laughed,

"It's the curse of being from Chelsea in England, now what would you like blondy?" Seraphina put her hand through his hair,

"I'll have the apple cider."

Seraphina nodded and got their drinks.

The whole meal was amazing, Clary had never really been on a proper date with Jace, but this date was by far the most romantic and the best. They laughed and held hands over the table now and again while looking into each other's eyes. It couldn't get any better.

After leaving the restaurant Jace lead her to an isolated green patch that wasn't far away from her house. It was dark and creepy but Jace reassured her that everything would be okay and he'd protect her no matter what.

"Why are we here exactly?" Clary asked as they sat on a bench,

"Just wait," Jace smiled as he took off his blazer and put it around her.

The moon shone over a small lake and as its light bounced off of the water, thousands of little lights flew from the water and around Jace and Clary. As they flew, Clary could here little high pitched giggles and felt wings clip her ear.

"They are Luna Nymphs, I thought you'd like it," Jace whispered as he held her hand and stroked it with his thumb,

"I love it," she was hypnotized by the lights.

She held her other hand out, which instantly attracted a cute nymph with pink delicate wings and a dark blue dress. It didn't stay on her hand for long and followed the rest of the nymphs in the direction of the moon before fading and becoming invisible. There were still nymphs coming from the water and as Clary looked at Jace, his face was lit up along with his hair and his eyes glowed. He stroked her cheek and rested his forehead against hers. A smile grew on her face as she closed her eyes and felt his soft lips against hers. The feeling of his lips was a sensation she couldn't get over and as they kissed, his hands moved down from her cheek to her waist and hers brushed his soft cheeks and moved up through his hair. The one thought in Clary's head, was how magical the night had been.

"I thought we could go to Central Park tomorrow, they're having this art fare that I thought you'd like," Jace smiled as they walked down the street leading to Clary's house,

"Oh," the stopped outside her door, "Izzy is going to help me with using weapons tomorrow,"

"Why not get me to help you?" Jace asked as he pushed back her hair.

She wanted to say that she was a bit sick of being his responsibility and that she just wanted to prove that she could be a great shadow hunter without him, but the words that came out of her mouth were, "I want to get to know Izzy more and she's training tomorrow, so it's a good opportunity."

Jace nodded and kissed her head before Jocelyn opened the door. She was wearing black silk pyjamas that were outlined with white and her black fluffy slippers, her hair was tied into a ponytail and she didn't look happy.

"You're ten minutes late," she scowled as she put her hands on her hips,

"Sorry, we got carried away," Jace smiled as he put his arm around Clary's waist,

"Okay well you're back, that's what matters," Jocelyn walked back inside leaving the door slightly open.

Jace pulled Clary into him and kissed her slowly. She couldn't help but giggle from the surprise and the fact that she knew her mum would be watching through the gap in the door. They looked into each other's eyes before Jace let her go and she walked inside, looking back at Jace before closing the door.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6- The Unknown**

"Magnus we've run out of bread," shouted Seraphina as she looked around for any morsel of food,

"And you're telling me this because?" Magnus rubbed his eyes as he came out of his bedroom wearing his silk black dressing gown and black boxers.

Seraphina opened and closed all the cupboards before turning to Magnus. She had lived with him for over ten years and it still surprised her that he had never done any type of grocery shopping.

"Because, _you_ are looking after _me_, therefore you should get some bread," Seraphina sat on the couch,

"I'm not in the mood," he grumbled as he sat next to her,

"Does this happen to be Alec related?"

Magnus looked down and put his feet up on the coffee table. Ever since he saw Alec a couple of days ago, he had been acting like a stubborn teenager and would try to battle his feelings in silence, alone.

"Tell him how you feel," Seraphina said as she fiddled with her fingers,

"After I told him I don't want to see him again? I couldn't do that,"

"Why not? Are you willing to spend the rest of your _immortal life_ knowing that you had a chance to be with the person you love the most and you just turned it down?" Seraphina looked at him with a stern face.

The only way to get through to Magnus was by being hard on him, being able to get him to talk was something Seraphina thought of as a gift. He looked back at her,

"You'll hate yourself forever if you don't talk to him," she kissed his cheek and walked towards Magnus's bedroom,

"You'll hate yourself forever if you don't embrace what you are," Magnus finally said,

Seraphina turned to him while trying to put on a brave face, "Don't bring that up ever again."

Walking down the street, Seraphina listened to music on her phone while eating a pretzel. Her hair was tied into two long pony tails and on her head was a black fedora with a white ribbon. She wore a white t-shirt with puff sleeves that was tucked into a black skirt with black braces connected to it. Her black and white high tops were the only shoes she had that didn't have dirt or blood on.

Once she got to Central Park, she put on her sun glasses and took in the scenery. Canvases with paintings formed a large semicircle in the middle of the wide space, on one side of them was a lemonade stand that was also selling ice cream and on the other side, there were people selling balloons. In the distance she could see people standing around a group of dancers, near them was a face painter who had a flower down her cheek. The beaming, bright, yellow sun made everything seem just that little bit more beautiful, along with the smell of the grass mixed with the smell of her cinnamon sugar pretzel. People sat on blankets, some were reading a book, having a picnic or were simply just lying there absorbing as much sun as possible, _luckily my skin is naturally golden_ she thought as she grinned at peoples attempts to get a suntan. She walked towards the semicircle of paintings smiling and waving at the children who walked past her. All the painting were abstract and based on summer with bright colours dancing and swirling on the page. One that caught her eye, was titled _Tidings from Hell_, it was a painting made of reds, yellows, oranges and black. There were weird markings in each corner of the painting that glowed at her as she studied it. She moved closer to the painting as if it was pulling her in and as she traced the markings, she felt a part of her come alive as if being kept dormant for all her life. The markings meant something to her; they weren't runes, they were something else, something that was a part of her but she wanted to forget. She felt the eyes of a snobbish woman rest on her, forcing her to walk away from the painting briskly and to sit on a bench underneath the trees.

From where she was sitting she could still faintly see the painting as well as the dancers who were helping distract her from it. Among the crowd around them was a tall boy with blond hair, his features were as if they were sculpted by an angel and his smile cast a spell on her, forcing her to smile along with him. When he turned his head in her direction she realized that she had seen him before, _of course it's Jace,_ she thought as she scrunched up the bag for her pretzel into a little ball. She started reading manga on her phone to keep her mind busy. Every now and again she'd look up from her phone to gaze at the scenery. Her eyes would first stop at the painting with the weird markings on. They jumped out of the painting, making it more obvious that she should know what they mean and around them grew an eerie green glow. Then her eyes would move quickly over to Jace, who had gone from watching the dancers to sitting on the grass and reading a book. He wore a white V-neck t-shirt with black jeans, there was a chain around his neck and the sun reflected off of it as well as his hair, creating an angelic glow around him. As she admired him, he turned his head so that his eyes caught hers. At that instant, she looked down back to her phone to read her manga again and feel her cheeks burn up with embarrassment.

"You know, it's rude to stare," chuckled a voice next to her.

Seraphina took out her earphones and turned her head to the left to see Jace sitting next to her. The sun shining on his top made his abdominal muscles just about visible and there was a smug look on his face, mixed with amusement.

"Don't flatter yourself, I have better things to look at," she smirked, "I didn't expect to see you of all people here,"

"I was meant to come with Clary, she painted one of the paintings over there," he pointed to the semicircle of paintings,

"Where is your precious Clary?"

"She's with Isabelle, they're doing weapons training."

Seraphina nodded while she wrapped her earphones around her phone. She noticed that despite the light that surrounded him, Jace's face didn't make an equally bright expression, instead there was a sense of disappointment and glumness written over his face.

"Show me which painting Clary painted," she smiled as she got up and put her phone in one of the pockets on her skirt.

Jace looked up at her and smiled before leading the way to the paintings and scanned them to finally stand in front of a painting titled _The Angel_. In the painting there was a field of green, lavender and white with a lake in the middle of it, which was paired with a dazzling blue sky with the sun shining. In front of the sun was an angel with wings that had water dripping off of them and whose eyes were a golden colour. The colours of the painting were all blended together apart from the angel. Seraphina looked at the painting and then looked at Jace, whose face was full of pride and happiness.

She yearned to see that face on someone when they looked at her or something that she had done. Memories attacked her and tears gathered in her eyes but she fought them back, remembering that she needed to be as strong as castle walls and not let any weakness show. She turned to see the painting from before, the markings on it were still glowing at her and they were moving towards her. As she walked towards the painting, she heard Jace's footsteps follow and him say, "What a strange piece of art,"

"Can you see the glowing around the markings?" she asked as she studied the painting again,

"No, it's in the language of warlocks, that's all I know," she turned to see Jace look at her strangely.

She heard a voice whisper in her head, "The only place for those who don't belong is the City of Hidden Monsters," she repeated what it said.

Jace put his hand on her shoulder suddenly, "You can read it?"

Seraphina didn't know what to say. If she explained why she could read it, then she'd have to explain her whole life to him and that would create the risk of him never wanting to see her again. She simply shrugged and walked off hoping to leave Jace behind, but he followed.

Despite the awkwardness at first, she enjoyed his company for the rest of the day. They bought some sandwiches and snacks and sat in Central Park, watching everyone around them as well as laughing, telling jokes and trading stories of being a Shadowhunter. She started to realize why Magnus didn't want her to meet him, he was exactly like he said he was- just charming.

After they had their picnic and got a balloon, Jace offered to walk her home. It was still day light but the Sun had just started to set making both of their shadows darker.

"You didn't have to walk me home," Seraphina smiled as they turned to walk down the street where the apartment was,

"I know, but I didn't think you'd be able to look after yourself without me," he laughed.

Just after they stopped so that Seraphina could hit Jace's arms, she saw that their two shadows were joined but another one. At first she thought it was Magnus due to the shadow being so tall and thin, but the shadow was joined with a voice.

"Hello Seraphina and Jace is it?" it said.

She recognised it and once she looked up, she felt herself overflow with dread and a shiver of terror slithered around her body. She saw a man wearing a black leather jacket with holes in over a ripped grey t-shirt, his black trousers were ripped as well and blood was splattered all over him, black and red. His face was pale, making the blood stand out on his angular cheeks and the blackness of his eyes were matched by his hair and the runes that covered him. Seraphina recognised him as the man that they saw a couple of nights ago when the greater demon attacked. She let go of her scarlet red balloon.

"Who are you?" Jace asked as Seraphina stared at the man speechless,

"I am Amaranth and I'm here for her," he pointed at Seraphina and walked slowly towards them.

Before he could take another step, Jace was standing in front of her, only a couple of metres away from Amaranth.

"How could you protect such a monster?" Amaranth raised his eyebrow and a corner of his mouth twitched into a half smile, "Does he not know who you truly are?"

Seraphina stared at him with eyes like daggers, hoping that his head would explode into millions of bloody pieces, but no matter what happened, she was not going to tell Jace what she was; she couldn't lose the only person who voluntarily spent time with her and chose to be her friend. Jace turned to look at her and studied her with his eyes, a clear sign that a question she hated hearing was going to slip from his lips, "Who are you Seraphina?"


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7- Amaranth, Warlocks and Jace.**

Jace was confused, he didn't know what to think of Seraphina. Their day together had been amazing, in less than twenty-four hours, he had made a good friend who he thought he knew well enough, but obviously he was wrong.

"Who are you, Seraphina?" he asked the question again.

Seraphina shook her head as a tear fell down her cheek; usually he'd wipe the tear away and probably hold her, but this time he didn't even want to touch her. Amaranth had called her a monster, there must have been something she was hiding that supported what he said. Hodge had done the same thing: became close to him, hid himself behind a mask of love and loyalty then revealed the mistrust and cruelness that he truly possessed. There was a chuckle that came from behind him but he didn't turn around, he wasn't going to let Seraphina out of his sight until he knew the truth.

"Tell him how you're not just a Shadowhunter, tell him what blood runs through your filthy veins," Amaranth said with a voice that was bone chillingly calm,

"Shut up! I am not a monster!" Seraphina protested as she looked at Amaranth and then back to Jace,

"Fine."

Jace felt himself be vigorously pulled back by one of Amaranth's arms and forced around. He didn't care for being man handled by a stranger, therefore he punched him and pushed him far from him once his face was turned. He then walked urgently towards Seraphina, "Tell me what you are," he bellowed,

"I'm just a Shadowhunter," she whimpered,

"Don't you dare lie to me."

Seraphina's mouth opened and trembled. There was terror in her eyes as well as the look that a pleading dog would make, despite her look of innocence, he made a disgusted face at her and shook his head. Before either of them could say anything, Jace was pulled back again, and this time Amaranth's grip around him was too tight, he struggled and tried to put up a fight but Amaranth was a python that just gripped tighter and tighter.

"Tell him!" his lips were by Jace's ears,

"You can't make me," Seraphina cried,

"In fact you'll find I can. I cannot touch you unless you are at the City of Hidden Monsters, your mother made sure of that," Amaranth held a gun to Jace's head, "but I can hurt the things you care about."

_She cares about me?_ Jace thought as he carried on struggling.

"Don't you even think about it," the tears falling down Seraphina's cheeks had gone.

It was funny how tears appeared when she was asked who she was, but they were then gone when Jace was held at gunpoint- that didn't seem like a way to show you care. He thought of all his times with Clary, how she asked for him to be brought back, how she was one of the small collection of people who truly loved him, at least he knew that she cared.

"You're right, shooting him isn't that effective," Amaranth swapped the gun for a knife and held it to Jace's neck.

The cool metal sent chills around his body and cooled him down even though he was close to death.

"Please, I'm begging you, let him go," Seraphina advanced forward but then stepped back cautiously,

"I've heard that before," Amaranth dropped the knife slowly from Jace's neck but his grip was still too strong, "I didn't listen."

The cool blade slit Jace's neck, causing a sharp pain to surge through his body as he was pushed to the floor. He quickly pushed himself up against the brick wall to the right, took off his top and held it desperately and tightly to his neck. He looked up at Seraphina to see that her beautiful green eyes had become cat like…..just like Magnus's. She was standing only a metre away from Amaranth who was grinning at her. He may have towered over her, but she stood firm with a sturdy look on her face as she clenched her fists. Then it was revealed what she was. Her hand opened again, producing black sparks that flew in a circle around her hand, at the sight of this, Amaranth moved backwards and so did Jace. She let out a cry as she threw the black sparks at Amaranth with what looked like all her strength. They flew through the air with speed while they entangled themselves around each other, before hitting his chest with enough force to push him at least twenty-five feet or more back and hit the wall, leaving cracks in it and allowing dust to be set free from the wall. Amaranth let out a cry of pain, which mutated into a psychotic laugh as he stumbled up onto his feet. Jace could feel himself getting weaker but it was Amaranth's cackle of a laugh that made him go cold.

"You are a monster, Seraphina," he snarled as he walked past Jace and grinned, "and I will kill you."

He waked past her with a limp and turned the corner leaving Seraphina looking hopeless. Jace couldn't see much anymore, everything was blurry and contorted, Seraphina shouting at him was too muffled for him to make out. He was too weak to hold up the shirt to his neck, his arm had flopped by his side and the more he tried to move it back up, the harder it was to breathe. Something icy but silk-like, probably Seraphina's hand, brushed his cheek and then pushed his head up. He could just about work out that she was holding a steele before his eyes gave up on him and closed slowly. The last thing he remembered was the sizzling feeling of the steele on his neck and Seraphina whispering in his ear softly, "I'm sorry."

A throbbing pain greeted Jace when he finally woke up on a cloud soft bed and underneath a sea of stain bed sheets. The walls of the room he was in were copper with little bits of glitter, drawings of runes were dotted around as well as markings he understood to be in the language of warlocks. By both sides of the bed were two black round side tables, one had witchlight encased in a crimson glass ball surrounded by three picture frames, the other had a large dark olive green book that was rimmed with gold and had a red ribbon falling out of it. As he sat up he saw Seraphina with her back to him holding a piece of paper with writing on, she threw it in the air and it burst into flames leaving behind black sparks that fell to the floor.

"So you're a warlock," he said as he ran his fingers over the scar that was on his neck,

"Yes and no," she turned around and pulled up a chair to his bed.

Her eyes were red and puffy and there were blotches of red on her skirt and her hands. She tilted her head to look at his scar and made a slight smile that then slowly faded.

"My mother is a warlock and my father is a Shadowhunter. You'd think I'd turn out a Shadowhunter because of how strong their blood is, but they just mixed I guess," she looked at the pictures on the side table before picking up one and giving it to Jace.

In the photo, there was a small girl with brown hair that fell over her red dress, she was holding hands with a man and a woman. The man had black hair that went down to his shoulders and was tied up, he had the same tanned skin as the little girl and was wearing a black tuxedo. Jace could just about make out an Angelic rune on his neck and another rune on his wrist. The woman had the same brown hair as the little girl but it was a bit shorter, there was a white lily in her hair matching her long white dress that went down to the floor. She wasn't as tanned as the little girl but she was just a pretty and had glitter on her face. All three of them were smiling in a scenery where the sky was dotted with stars that glittered above them.

"That's my parents and me on my eighth birthday, they took me to Paris. My mother has known Magnus for years and when she had to go away on business with my father, she left me here. They try their best to come see me and send me letters but I haven't seen them since I was sixteen, but they contact Magnus and he tells me how they are,"

"Why would a Shadowhunter be with a warlock?" it was a logical question, Jace thought,

"They were drunk apparently and my mother is one of those people who doesn't believe in abortion."

Jace didn't understand why she would keep this from anyone, to be able to possess the abilities of a warlock and a Shadowhunter seemed like something to boast about. He put the picture back on the table and looked at her. Tears had started falling down her cheek and as she wiped them, he noticed cuts on her arm.

"Where are those cuts from?" he asked,

"There are downsides to what I am. I used to hear things, demonic things that told me I needed to feel pain and I stupidly listened to them to shut them up. Magnus now has to do regular spells to stop it from happening again."

She couldn't speak anymore. Jace saw that all this was getting to her-opening up about who she was and revealing her darkest secrets. He moved himself to the edge of the bed and looked at her as she put her head in her hands. When she said she wasn't a monster, was she trying to convince him or herself? Either way, Jace thought she had the qualities that a monster would never have; she was funny, caring and most of all beautiful. He knew it was wrong to think of any girl other than Clary as beautiful, but seeing Seraphina cry forced him to think of everything good about her which included her beauty.

"I don't think you're a monster," he said softly "I don't tend to get along with monsters."

Seraphina giggled as she lifted her head and pushed her hair back. There was a moment where they both looked at each other, they didn't say anything; they just looked into each other's eyes and smiled.

"Promise me that you won't tell anyone," she looked at him with a face that was full of hope,

"Of course I won't," he reassured her,

"If many people want me dead, that will include Shadowhunters, and if you tell someone like Alec and then he tells others, they will find me and…"

"I promise, I will not tell anyone," he held her hands to stop her from panicking.

She nodded, looked at him then half smiled before getting up and walking over to the door. He felt sorry for her, he knew what it was like to not have parents, the difference was that his were dead, he knew where they were and that they couldn't get hurt, but hers were alive, she didn't know where they were and she didn't know if they were hurt or not. She stopped at the door and looked back at him, tears had stopped falling, but she still had the look of someone who could break with just a couple of words.

"I told Magnus to get the others to come for you," she smiled,

"Thank you," he got up and searched for his t-shirt, "Have you got my shirt?"

"Yes, I wanted to keep it off of you for as long as possible," she winked and then threw a black t-shirt to him.

The shirt smelt like sweets mixed with fruit and flowers, this made it obvious that it was Magnus's, only he would make sure that he clothes smelt so good.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but the shirt is coming back on," he put the shirt on.

It wasn't as baggy as he had hoped, it was a bit too fitting and ended at the top of his trousers, _I forgot Magnus was so skinny_ he chuckled to himself.

"I'm not disappointed," Seraphina opened the door and without turning around said, "I've seen much better."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8- Tell me, Now you know**

It was no surprise that Jace seemed to be absolutely fine when Alec, Isabelle and Clary got there. He was annoying Magnus, as usual, but once he looked at Alec, he decided to change the topic entirely.

"What happened to you?" Clary asked as she sat next to him on the bed.

Alec saw Jace turn to Seraphina who was standing behind them by the door.

"As I was walking Seraphina home, that man from when the greater demon attacked threatened us, so we fought and this happened," he pointed to the scar on his neck,

"How come there isn't a scratch on her?" Clary looked towards Seraphina.

Alec looked at her as well but she just shrugged and said, "I tried to help, but he wanted to face him on his own."

That sounded exactly like Jace, no matter what he had to face, he always wanted to face it himself as if to prove a point. Alec would always worry that eventually he'd get himself killed, but it was evident throughout everything that had happened, that Jace was a survivor. Despite the conversation that was going on, Alec became mesmerised by the runes and markings on the copper and glitter walls. The runes were painted in many different colours, some were done as if in a rush, others were done delicately and elaborately. The warlock markings were in black and outlined only two of the walls, Alec didn't understand it but the markings were dazzling and reminded him of someone just as beautiful.

"Why are there so many runes on the walls?" Alec walked up to the wall on the right and ran his fingers over a Strength rune,

"I get bored sometimes and I find drawing them on something other than my skin quite tranquil," Seraphina smiled,

"Did you draw the warlock markings as well?"

Alec turned to look at her to see her tanned skin lose its colour and radiance. She shook her head and then went to sit at the desk against the left wall.

"Right, let's get you back to the institute and you can have a bath," Clary suggested as she got up from the bed,

"But these sheets are so soft and silky," Jace protested,

"Yes, but you're so annoying and I'd rather not have you in my apartment," Magnus was standing at the door holding Jace's leather jacket.

He threw it to him and before leaving, he looked at Alec but didn't say a word. Alec couldn't take it anymore, he loved Magnus too much to not fight for their relationship. He followed him into his living room. Magnus was lying on his back on the couch with one arm and a leg hanging over the edge and the other arm over his face.

"You could at least talk to me," Alec gulped as he stood at the end of the couch by Magnus's head.

Magnus exhaled heavily as he got up elegantly. He was wearing a large black shirt over leather trousers, he looked tired and drained and his hair was all over the place.

"What do you want me to say, Alec?" Magnus shrugged his shoulders then stretched his arm out.

At first, Alec thought he may have been reaching out to him, like in the dreams he had had almost every night, but then he saw his hand disappear and then come back to be holding a bottle of water.

"That you love me,"

"You know I love you, Alec," Magnus closed his eyes and looked down slightly,

"Then why are you acting like this? Why must I always seem invisible to you?" Alec felt a tear start to form in his eye,

"Because," Magnus gulped and looked back up at Alec with glittering eyes, "I don't want you here, Alec. Please just go."

He walked away from him and over to the counter to press both of his hands against the surface and breathe heavily. Alec knew he was keeping something from him, it was clear in the way he gulped before. He wasn't going to believe him when he said that he didn't want him here, he knew there was more to all of this than that, there was a reason why Magnus couldn't face being around Alec and even if it was going to be painful, Alec wanted to know why.

"I'm not going anywhere. If you really loved you'd want me like I want you, but Jace was right, you don't seem to want me at all."

Magnus slammed the water bottle on the counter forcing half of the contents to burst out over it. He squeezed it before letting it go and turned around with a face full of anger that just couldn't be kept in.

"That's what you think? That after everything we've been through, I suddenly don't want you?" Magnus took a step towards him but they were still meters apart,

"I do one little thing wrong and it ruins the greatest thing that has ever happened to the both of us,"

"It wasn't a little thing, Alexander! You considered giving away my immortality, what hurts even more is that you didn't even talk to me about it as if it was your immortality to lose. You risk your life everyday as if it doesn't even matter and you think that gives you the right to decide what happens with mine."

Alec still didn't understand why Magnus wouldn't allow them to be together. As he took a step forward, he argued, "I risk my life because it's my duty as a Shadowhunter, you don't have a life _to_ risk, you have a gift where you can get hurt and heal perfectly,"

"You think immortality is a gift? Alec, I have to live my life knowing that I will have to watch everyone I have ever loved die, while I carry on living forever. I do everything in my power to keep you alive, when in the end I will have to watch the one thing that means the most to me slowly die and will not be able to save you. If anything immortality is a curse not a gift."

Alec tried to hold back the tears, but they wouldn't stop trickling down his cheeks. When he looked at Magnus, he saw that there were tears creeping down his cheeks as well, he had never seen him cry properly before. He started to feel sick and there was a knot tightening in his stomach, it felt like he was slowly falling and Magnus was the only one who could catch him or it was the end for him.

"Magnus, you don't understand how much this is hurting me. I want to have breakfast in bed with you again, laugh with you again…kiss you again," Alec felt the knot get tighter, "I don't think there are any words to describe how much you mean to me and how much this is torturing me,"

"And you think this isn't hurting me at all? I may be immortal, Alec, but my heart is not; it's like its dying without you, Alec. I told you that I never wanted to see you again for a reason, to save us from all this, the pain, the tears, the heartache," Magnus lowered his head as he wiped away some of his tears.

Seeing Magnus like this forced Alec to take a step forward, but before he could take another, Magnus had put his hand out to stop him.

"What is it that's stopping you from being with me?" Alec wept,

"Knowing that I'm going to lose you whether I like it or not," it sounded like Magnus was slowly breaking just like Alec was,

"Then why can't we just be together until that moment comes? It won't be for a while anyway,"

"Because, it will always be in the back of my mind, knowing that I'll have to say goodbye to you,"

"Then don't say goodbye now."

Alec looked into Magnus's eyes. He realised that both he and Magnus had taken enough steps forward that they were so close that he could feel Magnus's cool breath tickle his cheek. They were both breathing heavily as if revealing everything they felt was one of the biggest struggles they have ever faced. Alec slowly held Magnus's hands and moved his left hand delicately up his arm to stroke his cheek. Magnus smiled as he closed his eyes and put his hand over Alec's. The feeling of Magnus's soft skin sent tingles all over Alec's body, it was a feeling he had longed for. He felt himself move in closer so that their lips were almost touching and he could feel Magnus's heart beat in time with his.

"Alec, please don't make this any harder," Magnus whispered as he opened his eyes again,

"I'm making it easier, I can't live without you," Alec felt the knot that was in his stomach loosen and be replaced by butterflies.

Magnus moved Alec's hand down from his cheek and let go of his other hand, before looking into his eyes.

"Unfortunately, I have to learn to live without you."

Magnus walked away from Alec and lay back on the couch in the exact same position as before. A sinking feeling took over Alec as he watched him and wiped the rapidly falling tears from him face. If his relationship with Magnus came to an end then he would cease to exist, nothing would be the same, he wouldn't be the same; how could he go on without him? All energy was drained from him, losing Magnus was like losing a part of himself.

"Please, Alec, please just go."

Alec nodded as he opened the door and looked back at Magnus. If he had the energy he would say how much he loved him and how he needed him, but no words would come out of his mouth, there was nothing else to say. He left and once the door had closed he sunk to the floor and burst into tears. He had lost him.


End file.
